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Theorist
Original Poster
#1 Old 26th Feb 2015 at 5:44 PM Last edited by ScaryRob : 26th Feb 2015 at 6:45 PM.
Default Bathroom Talk
No, not that kind.

Interested in players' opinions on how spacious they like their bathrooms and kitchens.
Pics are welcome. Show me what you consider an ideal bath or kitchen.

I usually don't leave a lot of extra room in my kitchens and baths.
I don't make allowances for toddler's potties or those kind of things in baths, as I think they belong in the bedroom/kids room/ nursery or some other handy place.
Here's what I call a "tight" bathroom:

Everything works and is accessible, obviously. This will be an apartment, and the bathroom on the right is the "public" one. It has an empty square for a litter box.
The bathroom on the left is the ensuite, where I ended up with an empty square (a rarity) next to the entry archway. The tendency would be to put the shower stall into that square, but I'd rather keep it at the edge of the apartment so it doesn't obstruct the view when playing. I dunno, I might change my mind on that.
These are never things I crap out in five minutes. I've been going at this apartment since yesterday. There have been many, many countless revisions, a lot of them dealing with the baths and the surrounding areas.

Edit: So, here's another version of that ensuite:

Got rid of the showerstall altogether and replaced it with a communal shower stall.
A little bit crowded near the big window, but not too bad:

Of course, that shower stall doesn't have to be two tiles. A one-tile stall would work too:

I think I might actually stick with this. Use HugeLunati'cs CC backless showertub in the small bath and his backless showerstall in the ensuite. Anyone that doesn't like those can sub the Maxis ones.
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Mad Poster
#2 Old 26th Feb 2015 at 6:43 PM
Well, I wouldn't have used that space with the diagonal wall. I'd have kept that for a bedroom or public room. Bathrooms are utilitarian and the diagonal walls are aesthetic flourishes that don't suit them.

My ideal bathroom varies with the family. I like to leave a square for the potty chair or the litterbox, and it's nice to have space for laundry baskets and shelves with bathroom clutter, so 3x3 and 3x4 bathrooms are common. The minimum size for a full bath is 2x3, with the door (often two) in the middle square of the long side, and the fixtures against the short doors. I hate bathtub-only arrangements - I've seen about two bath-only arrangements in houses that were actually lived in, in my entire life, and both were in historic houses. Shower/tub combos or showers, none of this shower and a tub in the same room nonsense. It's a waste of space. And rather than have the commode in its own enclosure, I'll put up interior half-walls in bathrooms that are likely to see a lot of traffic. Powder rooms are most often 2x2 unless the family is likely to have cats or children, in which case we're back to 2x3.

One space-saving trick (borrowed from real life) is to have irregularly-shaped bathrooms. A four-square long wall can nest a closet and a shower/tub, or two shower/tubs in back-to-back bathrooms. A three-square long wall can do the same with a closet and a commode.

Lights are on the walls, generally beside and above the sink or the commode. Windows are generally privacy windows and go above commodes so a mirrored medicine cabinet can go above the sink. I always position showers and tubs with the faucet and showerhead coming out of a full-height wall. Walls are almost always tiled and floors are tile or linoleum. Where possible bathrooms are adjacent to each other and/or the kitchen, horizontally and vertically, so as to maintain the illusion of a "wet wall," but I don't insist on that.

Ugly is in the heart of the beholder.
(My simblr isSim Media Res . Widespot,Widespot RFD: The Subhood, and Land Grant University are all available here. In case you care.)
Theorist
Original Poster
#3 Old 26th Feb 2015 at 7:42 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Peni Griffin
Well, I wouldn't have used that space with the diagonal wall. I'd have kept that for a bedroom or public room. Bathrooms are utilitarian and the diagonal walls are aesthetic flourishes that don't suit them.

I would disagree with that.
Reason being is that most bathroom "furniture" objects are only 1 tile, which means they can be placed into nooks and crannies that furniture from other rooms would not fit. The biggest item in a bathroom is typically the tub, which is only 2 tiles and half the space in front of a tub can be blocked and the tub will still work (except for bathing dogs).
If there is an oddly-shaped space in a house, whether it has a diagonal wall or something else, putting a bathroom there would be one of my first considerations, for those reasons.

Other rooms require comparatively much larger open, uninterrupted space. A full-size bed with two endtables requires a 4-tile wall to be put against. If you want any kind of space around the bed beyond that, you're talking a 5x5 or 6x5 bedroom, minimum.

A full dining room with a 2-tile table and surrounding chairs requires a minimum 3X4, just for those furniture items - and then there would almost always be additional space around those. A minimum of 4x4, with 5x5 or 5x6 more typical for a full dining room, imo.

In neither of the above two cases would a diagonal wall be welcome. As you say, it would be an aesthetic thing, if there is room for it, somewhere in the distance and away from the furniture.

In livings rooms I agree, diagonal walls are certainly not only doable, but make for nice aesthetics. This is mainly because living rooms, like bathrooms, have many 1-tile items that can be placed willy-nilly. There's usually room for a couch, somewhere in the middle, but just about everything else is 1-tile, and even a couch can be substituted with a 2-tile loveseat, if necessary.
I suppose a pic of my floorplan for the apartment would show that there is no other possible place for an ensuite bathroom, since by definition it has to be connected to the bedroom:

This is the second floor, above the lobby common area. There will be 5 more floors above this, probably all identical. It will look similar to this.

Quote:
And rather than have the commode in its own enclosure, I'll put up interior half-walls in bathrooms that are likely to see a lot of traffic.

Will half-walls prevent "nudity shock"?

Quote:
One space-saving trick (borrowed from real life) is to have irregularly-shaped bathrooms. A four-square long wall can nest a closet and a shower/tub, or two shower/tubs in back-to-back bathrooms. A three-square long wall can do the same with a closet and a commode.

That's what I was referring to above, irregular spaces. Although (I wouldn't call a 4-tile wall an irregular space.)

Quote:
Where possible bathrooms are adjacent to each other and/or the kitchen, horizontally and vertically, so as to maintain the illusion of a "wet wall," but I don't insist on that.

Yeah, the wet wall thing is of least importance to me, although a while back I did update one of my Lots largely because of that, but only because it was easy and didn't change the functionality of anything.
The Great AntiJen
retired moderator
#4 Old 26th Feb 2015 at 9:49 PM
I have to say I'd agree with Peni about the diagonal wall but with that set up I see also that you can't avoid it. I also like full bathrooms - it should have a sink as well as a bath. I just can't bear, even in sims, people who do not wash their hands after using the loo (I have the appropriate hack for that). Ugh. Personally, I would use 2x3 up to 3x4 too though I've been known to make bigger bathrooms in order to fill up the alloted space.

I no longer come over to MTS very often but if you would like to ask me a question then you can find me on tumblr or my own site tflc. TFLC has an archive of all my CC downloads.
I'm here on tumblr and my site, tflc
Mad Poster
#5 Old 26th Feb 2015 at 10:50 PM
The four-square wall is in the bedroom; the bathroom is irregular, with the tub in the alcove created by the bedroom closet.

As for the diagonal wall - I just wouldn't try to make a house shaped that way! Certainly not an apartment building. Apartments are finicky enough to build without that. I tend to build houses from the inside out, and prevent them from being featureless boxes by offsetting rooms from each other and adding porches, rather than determining the shape and then fitting the rooms in.

Ugly is in the heart of the beholder.
(My simblr isSim Media Res . Widespot,Widespot RFD: The Subhood, and Land Grant University are all available here. In case you care.)
Theorist
Original Poster
#6 Old 27th Feb 2015 at 6:27 PM
Quote: Originally posted by maxon
I just can't bear, even in sims, people who do not wash their hands after using the loo (I have the appropriate hack for that).

I don't care whether they wash their hands, for me having a sink is an aesthetic, realism thing.
Theorist
Original Poster
#7 Old 27th Feb 2015 at 7:32 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Peni Griffin
I tend to build houses from the inside out, and prevent them from being featureless boxes by offsetting rooms from each other and adding porches, rather than determining the shape and then fitting the rooms in.

I guess I work the other way.
When I see a beautiful house, for real or, as usual, in a picture, I try to recreate it's exterior shape, first and foremost. Then I try to recreate the inside as accurately as possible, paying particular attention to any special features and maybe adjusting the exterior features only minimally, if necessary.

At least the two of you that have posted to this thread don't seem to mind small bathrooms. I keep seeing some of these uploads where the bathrooms start rivaling the bedrooms in terms of size and I'm thinking, wtf?
Mad Poster
#8 Old 27th Feb 2015 at 8:15 PM
Most of the time a small bathroom is gonna do just fine (I mean, really- how much time do you WANT to spend in a bathroom unless you need to... umm... "make use of the fixtures." In a few rare cases though, enormous bathrooms are appropriate- a master suite with a bedroom, sitting room, walk in closet, etc, kind of demands a luxurious spa-style retreat. Or if you're trying to make a house that looks handicap-accessible (even if there aren't functional wheelchairs or walkers in the game), you may need to leave more space to make it look as though medical hardware could get through.

In any case though, a bathroom that gets much above 10 or 12 tiles needs to have something to make it obvious that it's a specially designed room... a jacuzzi, access to a walk-in closet, that sort of thing.

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Theorist
Original Poster
#9 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 4:58 AM Last edited by ScaryRob : 8th Mar 2015 at 9:46 PM.
Here's something I found discovered a couple of months ago.

Anyone's who's looked at some of my Lot uploads will have noticed that I seem to place a high value on being able to bathe dogs in the house. I mean, if a bathroom can be arranged to allow it, why not? I always make an effort to do this.

So I was testing one of my houses and initially had the bathroom configured like this:

(The two round objects are ceiling lights)

Now, even though the two squares in front of the tub might be unobstructed, it isn't always guaranteed that a dog will be able to bathe. For example, if there is a wall on the other side of the 1-tile path in front of a tub (right behind the Sim in the picture), dog bathing would not be possible.
If there are merely objects, such as in this case a showerstall and litterbox, dog bathing should be possible.

So I went ahead and tested this layout, and it worked, the dog was able to be bathed. This is what the picture above shows.
Then I played this Test Family, which besides the dog also includes a cat, for a day or two.

Toward the end of this test, I decided to bathe the dog again.
Wouldn't work. Nothing in the bathroom layout had changed, but no matter how many times I tried, with either of my Test Sims, the dog could not be bathed.

What had changed?

Cat poop.
As long as that litter box was empty, the dog could be bathed. As soon as that litterbox had presents in it, the dog could no longer be bathed. The cat had of course used the litterbox during the time I played these Test Sims.

What I haven't tested (yet) is whether dog bathing would again be possible once the litterbox is cleaned. But if I'm not mistaken, there has to be a certain amount of litter in the box before the cleaning option comes up, so that might be a couple of days during which the dog could not be bathed. Not an acceptable situation, as far as I'm concerned and therefore this is not an acceptable bathroom layout. It would be, without the litterbox, but I ended up with a completely different layout anyway.

Cat poop.
Stuff like this will drive a person insane.

There, I am insane.
Alchemist
#10 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 6:59 AM
I feel that bathroom Rob has too much window on it, Im big on privacy and a large window is doing nothing for my need for privacy!
I also like to have the toilet seperate from the main bathroom, if the space I have built allows for it, just so sims dont get interupted in the bath or shower.
And I like 'making' showers rather than using the ones in the game like the one below


Rome wasn't built in a day

Need help finding building items, check out my building blog https://bestbuilditems4sims2.wordpress.com/
Theorist
Original Poster
#11 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 7:26 AM
Quote: Originally posted by ekrubynaffit
I feel that bathroom Rob has too much window on it, Im big on privacy and a large window is doing nothing for my need for privacy!
I also like to have the toilet seperate from the main bathroom, if the space I have built allows for it, just so sims dont get interupted in the bath or shower.
And I like 'making' showers rather than using the ones in the game like the one below.

If you're referring to the big diagonal window uptopic, I agree about privacy, but a couple of things to keep in mind - I stated in one of my posts uptopic that this is an apartment house, with the first floor being the lobby and common area. The second floor is where the apartments start. So, to begin with, this window is not on ground level.
Secondly, I'm using the smoked/etched version of the Werknothom windows, not only for the bathrooms, but everywhere around the circular structure. Take a look at the picture of the floorplan. Those windows offer a good degree of privacy.
Thirdly, as far as I'm concerned, it should be assumed that there would normally be a curtain that could be drawn across those big windows, again not just at the bathrooms, but all other rooms as well. In fact, the other day I came across a set of CC curtains that will adjust their size (width and height, presumably) according to whatever window they are used with. I should have downloaded them right away, but now I will have to find them again. (Anyone reading this know where they might be?)
A final reason why I'm using those big windows on the bathrooms is to maintain the exterior symmetry of the building. It's a modern apartment tower and it would not look right if I had big windows all around except at one spot.
So, yeah, I'm fully on board with the privacy issue, but there is usually a tradeoff of some sort.

Again, if you're referring to the big bathroom uptopic with the diagonal window, it has a separate toilet stall. The smaller bathroom I posted earlier with the dog bathing issue is in a 2-Sim house, so no separate stall is needed.

That's a nice layout, Tiffany, and I like the bathroom. It looks like you're using some type of CC wall around the shower. Glass block works good for that kind of situation too.
Sorry about the long post.
Theorist
#12 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 7:27 AM
Where are you seein tires at Jo?
Theorist
#13 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 7:49 AM
Nope, don't see tires. This is what I saw
Screenshots
Needs Coffee
retired moderator
#14 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 8:31 AM
That's weird.

"I dream of a better tomorrow, where chickens can cross the road and not be questioned about their motives." - Unknown
~Call me Jo~
Constant Contestant
retired moderator
#15 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 11:12 AM
Quote: Originally posted by ScaryRob
In fact, the other day I came across a set of CC curtains that will adjust their size (width and height, presumably) according to whatever window they are used with. I should have downloaded them right away, but now I will have to find them again. (Anyone reading this know where they might be?).
Do you mean these? They are by TNW and Michelle has loads of recolours here and here at Leefish too.

Want a specific style of house or community building? Why not take a look at my profile and see what I build and then come ask me to make it!
The Great AntiJen
retired moderator
#16 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 12:56 PM
Blimey Jo - what's going on?

I no longer come over to MTS very often but if you would like to ask me a question then you can find me on tumblr or my own site tflc. TFLC has an archive of all my CC downloads.
I'm here on tumblr and my site, tflc
Constant Contestant
retired moderator
#17 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 4:58 PM
Yes we see tyres in your picture, Jo, but a bathroom in Scaryrob's.

Want a specific style of house or community building? Why not take a look at my profile and see what I build and then come ask me to make it!
Theorist
Original Poster
#18 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 5:15 PM Last edited by ScaryRob : 8th Mar 2015 at 10:44 PM.
Quote: Originally posted by KarenLorraine
Do you mean these? They are by TNW and Michelle has loads of recolours here and here at Leefish too.

Those are the ones - thanks very much.

Edit: Argh, they don't work with diagonal windows - too bad. However, there seem to be some vertical blinds on that page that have a diagonal mesh that would actually be more appropriate for big, 3-tile windows.

Edit #2: The vertical blinds are kind of...crude, imo. And the diagonal mesh leaves gaps inbetween the sections:
Theorist
Original Poster
#19 Old 8th Mar 2015 at 10:46 PM
Quote: Originally posted by joandsarah77
Guess what, I got up this morning and now finally your bathroom is showing up ScaryRob. Fascinating.

Glad you got that fixed.
You're going to delete all relevant uptopic posts, right?
And everyone else please do so too. (I'm nuking mine, except for this one, which will go last.)
Please - thanks.
Alchemist
#20 Old 9th Mar 2015 at 5:12 AM
Rob, if you put move_objects on, boolProp allow45degreeangleofrotation true on, and boolProp snapobjectstogrid false on then you can make the blinds you want go on the diagonal. However it may obstruct the bath.

Rome wasn't built in a day

Need help finding building items, check out my building blog https://bestbuilditems4sims2.wordpress.com/
Theorist
Original Poster
#21 Old 9th Mar 2015 at 6:16 AM
Quote: Originally posted by ekrubynaffit
Rob, if you put move_objects on, boolProp allow45degreeangleofrotation true on, and boolProp snapobjectstogrid false on then you can make the blinds you want go on the diagonal. However it may obstruct the bath.

Cool, thanks, I didn't think of that. Still wouldn't use them on those big 2-tile windows, but it can come in handy on smaller ones.
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